The Only One
by Vycksta
Summary: The death of a loved one can make those who are grieving react in different ways... unfortunately for Inoichi, not only was he and Ino coping with it in an unusual way but so were people he hardly knew.


**Title**: The Only One  
**Fandom**: Naruto  
**Rating**: Just a few swear words. Nothing drastic as usual...

**Authors Notes**: This was only going to be around 4,000 words... honest! Guess I just got carried away, ha ha.

I'm actually really proud of this little baby. Trust me when I say that it's rare for me to like something I write... this is only the third piece since starting to do fanfiction again sometime last January.

Anyways. This is bascially me spreading the love for Inoichi, who I think is ten tons of awesomesauce and then some, just like his super pwnsome and super sexy daughter of his. I do hope that I have both him and Ino in character and that anyone who reads this enjoys it yet if not, slap me with the old constructive criticism. I thrive on it. Fnarg.

That's that really. Just hope that it doesn't fail too hard cause i'll be Hella disappointed if it does. -waves the flag of support for Inoichi-

---

The past six days had weather so foul it was enough to even make the happiest person go into a state of depression; the rain would do nothing but charge its way down the sky in determination and the winds were cold and harsh enough to break down even the sturdiest of trees.

Yet on this particular day it seemed that even the weather knew what the occasion was and ceased its tirade of cruel rainstorms and gales.

The sun rose from the East with a blooming flourish, scattering rays of a near fluorescent yellow across every inch of ground it could cover. The sky was pigmented a glorious cyan which was occasionally littered with an ivory coloured cloud that looked like it was freshly made from a cotton candy machine. Instead of the devastatingly strong hurricanes that plagued across the lands over the last six days and nights the winds of the new day were a lot calmer and mellower, giving off no sound at all but was just strong enough to shift leaves off trees to let people know of its presence. Among the cascading leaves were beautiful, delicate pink cherry blossoms, waltzing around the free open spaces and completing a picture perfect scene. This was a view that dreams were made of, a view that people would curse themselves should they miss it, a view that when noticed could only be admired... and admiration was exactly one particular person had in mind.

Carefully watching the pirouetting blossoms and blinking sharply when the wind decided to twirl its way through locks long and coloured a dirty blonde, Inoichi Yamanaka mentally thanked the weather for being so gracious on a day that had a great deal of importance to him. He then let out an inaudible sigh and knelt down so his eyes would then come into contact with something completely different, something that was the total opposite to the magnificent display nature was producing.

The new view was just one object; a stone dark grey in colour with jet black, elegant looking writing portrayed in the center. This piece of granite had a rounded edge and was placed on top of a small plinth of the same colour, the plinth in itself hardly noticeable because of the many bouquets of flowers in various colours and shapes littering it. Silently and carefully, Inoichi gingerly stroked the petals of some of the flowers before moving his hand up the stone and resting it on the top. He could sense that his eyes were starting to sting, a sign that tears were going to start flowing...

"You can... cry... if you want to."

Without speaking Inoichi turned to face the direction of where the near silent voice that disturbed his thinking was coming from... and smiled a little when he saw that the voice belonged to his teenage daughter, Ino. Another soundless sigh escaped as the wind saw its chance to dance its way through the small yet hardly noticeable gap between the two relatives.

"There's nothing wrong with you crying as well Ino." Inoichi finally spoke after a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, looking up at his daughter intently. "You don't need to put on an act around me, you know."

"I don't do crying and you know that." Ino replied in haste, carefully running her fingers through her own lengthy blonde locks before suddenly realizing the double meaning in her words. "No offence to Mum though." she quickly added, flicking away a cherry blossom that landed on her shoulder.

Nodding just the once, the action meaning that he knew exactly what his daughter meant, Inoichi let another small smile appear on his face before turning back towards the stone he was looking at a mere two minutes ago. He then stared intently at the stone's entirety with no emotion yet a few seconds was all it took for the silence and the quiet demeanour to break as the realization that he was kneeling next to the gravestone of his late wife hit him like a ton of bricks. With his face in his hands Inoichi freely let the tears trickle down his face while the wind whispered around him, as if to provide a source of comfort.

Fourteen days ago everything was as cheerful as the most vibrant beams of sunshine. The day started as normal, a typical Tuesday. The morning saw Inoichi head off halfway down Konohagakure, the village hidden in the leaves, to meet up with his best friends of the past twenty-five years, Shikaku Nara and Chouza Akimichi, for a drink or two. Three hours then flew by at the pace of lightning and after saying goodbyes to his friends and vowing to get them back for the umpteenth time about him fathering a daughter instead of a son Inoichi was soon back with his wife, helping her out in the flower shop that they jointly owned, a shop owned by many Yamanaka's before them. Late afternoon saw Ino return from training with her team-mates and her Jonin sensei and it was at that time that the suggestion to visit a restaurant first came into light. One mutual agreement later and off went the trio.

When the Yamanaka family got into the restaurant Ino got a vibe that something was wrong... and immediately seethed when across the room she saw her rival, Sakura Haruno, sitting at a table with her Mum. Thankfully for the blonde kunoichi Sakura was just about ready to leave yet it still didn't stop Ino from throwing a few insults at her adversary, labelling her Billboard Brow loud enough for the entire restaurant to hear and getting a glare from her Father in return. Ino's response was to smile deviously, shout out another insult to Sakura and fold her arms in triumph... before frowning.

That bad vibe she got when she first entered the restaurant hadn't disappeared, something Ino thought would happen once Sakura and her Mum left. She tried to say something to Inoichi and her Mother yet her pleas were ignored as they still weren't happy about Ino's verbal tirade. So with a sigh and a whine, Ino sat down, albeit a little concerned.

Fifty five minutes later and the family of three were tucking into her desserts, Ino eating at a slower pace as her worries from when she first entered the building were not disappearing. In fact, they were worsening.

"What's got into you tonight?" Inoichi questioned his daughter, who was swirling her ice-cream around while staring at the restaurant's main door. "You've been awkward all night since seeing Sakura. I thought you two were..."

Ino looked at her parents and rolled her eyes. "I'm telling you Dad, something is up and it isn't down to Billboard Brow..." Yet as soon as Ino spoke her words, the windows of the restaurant were shattered spontaneously as the building was quickly invaded by renegade ninja dressed entirely in black, save for the small slit in their balaclavas which allowed them to see.

Instantly Inoichi rose up from his chair and stood behind his wife and daughter as a human barrier; they were near the back of the restaurant and there was no way they could escape easily. However while Ino was alright in helping her Dad protect her Mum, the older woman of the Yamanaka family disagreed with the action, grabbing both Inoichi and Ino's wrists to get their attention.

"Fight them." she spoke with determination... and with a mutual nod and a brief family hug, both Inoichi and his spirited daughter set about fending off the intruding shinobi.

The fight in itself was short lived. Other Konoha ninja joined in the scuffle and were repelling the enemy with all their might. Inoichi and Ino also worked flawlessly as a team; Inoichi using the Yamanaka's mind-transfer jutsu to hold the opponents in place while Ino landed a perfect uppercut on their chins, sending them flying out in the direction they entered. Pretty soon the last of the rival ninja were disposed of and celebrations commenced, father and daughter joining in by giving each other a high five. With confidence and with praise being said to one another, Inoichi and Ino walked back towards the third member of the family... and smiles quickly became cries of despair as she lied awkwardly on the floor, blood flowing profusely from a pair of horrific stab wounds to the stomach.

"NO!" was all Inoichi screamed as he quickly knelt down by his wife, trying to stop the blood flow by applying pressure to the wounds with his hands. Ino, in a rare state of speechlessness, quickly used the knowledge she picked up from Tsunade, the fifth Hokage, to try and heal her Mother's wounds with the medical jutsu she learned. Yet despite their valiant efforts there was nothing both of them could do to save one of the most important people in their lives. She was dying... and she knew it.

"You can NOT die." Ino screamed as Inoichi battled in vain not to cry in front of the crowd that had now gathered around the three.

A wary smile appeared on her paling face as Ino's Mother carefully lifted her arm and rested her hand gently on her daughter's face. "It's my time Ino. Everyone must die sometime and tonight is mine. Promise me you'll do well in your training and that you'll get what you desire in life... cause i've always been proud of you and I will continue to believe that in Heaven."

Cupping her Mother's hand with her own, Ino held it by her face for a few seconds, nodding to say that she'll do her best to keep the promise. Then with her other hand, the fading woman reached out to her gibbering husband, resting it on Inoichi's knee.

"Now now my dear, keep smiling." she whispered as Inoichi took her hand and held it tight. "You have to be strong for yourself as you know I hate it when you get all panicky. Not only that but you also have to be there for Ino; she may be fiery and seriously stubborn yet she still needs the love and guidance of a parent, from her Father. You can do that for me, can't you?"

Letting the tears glide freely down his cheeks, Inoichi nodded. Then in a cruel twist of fate, his wife, Ino's Mother, took her last, rasping breath and died, before both of them could tell her how much they loved her and always would.

One week after the death of a woman much loved by both Ino and Inoichi saw her funeral take place. The day was as beautiful as it could be, with the sun providing enough warmth from its rays to touch the skin of all those mourning, as a way of comfort... and the wind ceasing to move, letting cherry blossoms fall from the trees in their own good time. The funeral in itself went as smoothly and as perfectly as it could go despite the occasion and there were many people from Konoha in attendance to share their grief. Among them were Shikaku and Chouza and their sons, Shikamaru and Chouji, who were Ino's team-mates, as well as Ino's sensei, Asuma Sarutobi, who saw it in himself to give both the surviving Yamanaka's a bear hug. While this completely embarrassed Ino, who threatened to "knock someone into next week" if they laughed at her, Inoichi was more grateful of the friendly gesture, hugging Asuma back and crying on his shoulder.

Later on that day, after laying his beloved to rest and saying goodbye and thank you to everybody who came along, Inoichi found out why the restaurant was attacked on that fateful night. The owner's only son had been discovered just the night before sleeping with the girlfriend of a man who had a tendency to get revenge in violent, extreme ways. The shinobi who came into the eaterie twenty-four hours later were all hired by the cheated male to locate and murder the one who had wronged him. This only made Inoichi feel worse; his wife was caught in the onslaught about something so trivial, something that could have been solved in a more platonic manner.

"Bastards." was all Ino said when her Father told her what he had just discovered... and he agreed with that simple statement one hundred percent.

From that day onward the weather took a dramatic turn, the neverending onslaught of monsoons and hurricanes basically summing up the mood that plagued Inoichi since laying his cherished wife to rest.

He knew that he shouldn't be acting like he was; he was a man who generally didn't let the more depressing side of emotions get to him and not only that, he promised to be strong for Ino, who was taking it day by day and generally coping well despite the loss of her Mother. At the same time though, he had lost the one he loved forever and a day, the one who married him and made him a Father, the one who loved him back, the one he hoped to grow old with. Thankfully Ino was being more understanding then she normally can be and was fine with Inoichi's erratically emotional displays; everyone after all has their different ways of grieving.

Now there they were... Inoichi and his daughter, visiting the gravestone of a woman who was an important part of their lives for the first time since the funeral... and once again the weather seemed to somewhat compliment their emotions, continuing to produce the admiring display while Inoichi shed a few more tears at his wife's final resting place.

For a while the only sound that could be heard in the entirety of the graveyard was the sobbing of a broken man... and after a few more minutes this was doubled, as Ino finally broke down for the first time since her Mother's death and also started to cry, flinging herself to the ground and wrapping her arm's around Inoichi's waist while muffling her wails against his body. Inoichi was taken aback at first, but soon found the composure to comfortingly wrap an arm around his daughter's own waist, a little relieved that Ino was finally starting to grieve properly.

"Now... I thought you said that you don't do crying?"

"Be quiet Dad." came Ino's muffled retort to Inoichi's question, rubbing her eyes to get rid of the stinging sensation in them.

The next half an hour went by rather quickly despite the occasion, as both Inoichi and Ino sat down in front of the gravestone of their lost relative talking about the good times they shared and the promises they had to keep. There was even a few laughs emitted as they fondly recalled the time that they both surprised the deceased woman as it was her birthday and how during the celebrations Shikamaru wrecked the cake, comically falling into it as Ino criticized him for being his typical lazy self in training. Eventually though they both realized that the time for them to leave was upon them, as the sun was starting to get hotter and rather unbearable on the skin.

With a wistful smile, Inoichi had one final gaze upon the flowers left at the headstone and gingerly kissed the top of it, telling his late wife that he would see her same time next week and that no matter what, he'd always love her. He then hoisted himself off the ground and turned away to start to walk back into the general hustle and bustle that was the main part of Konoha... yet stopped after a few steps. Turning back he could see that Ino was still very much seated on the ground, a bouquet of flowers in her hands so she could sniff the fragrant scent they omitted and her eyes somewhat staring off into the distance.

"Come on Ino, we should be getting back."

"No one."

"Huh?"

"No one can EVER replace Mum, EVER." Ino spoke flatly, turning to face her father. "We don't need another woman in our lives telling us what's right and what's wrong, trying to be like her, trying to take her place. No stupid, snivelling woman can not and will not compare to my Mum... and I mean that."

Normally a statement like this would make any other parent scold the child for acting in such a selfish and stubborn way... not Inoichi. Instead he walked back towards the headstone and placed a hand on Ino's shoulder as a form of reassurance.

"I agree with you." was all he said... and was all he needed to say, as with one gallant leap Ino was off the ground, a huge grin plastered over her face. The smile was then returned by Inoichi, who ushered his daughter to put the flowers back before they set off.

The walk back to the flower shop was silent, but not uncomfortable. In fact it was rather reflective for both Ino and Inoichi. For Ino she was thinking about ways to stop Sakura being such a show off in front of men, as the blonde kunoichi feels that somebody with a large forehead like Sakura shouldn't really bother... Inoichi's thinkings however were entirely different. He was making a vow to himself to finally start living up to that promise his wife made before she passed away. He was going to control his emotions again and not be a fretting ball of panic and he was going to look out for Ino more vigilantly than he did before... for his late wife's sake more than for his own.

Ino was right, Inoichi added to himself as an afterthought. There needn't be another woman in his life as a replacement because to be bluntly, nobody would ever compare. Some people after losing a loved one eventually finds somebody else... yet he knew he couldn't do that. To him that would be discarding everything he ever shared with his wife.

The woman he loved so dearly and lost so suddenly was the only one for Inoichi...

It was just a shame that his view seemed to be discarded.

"Ha ha ha, this is an amazing read!" Chouza proudly declared, waving around a piece of paper in one of his hands while gorging himself with chicken flavoured crisps with the other. "I never knew women could write like this!"

Shikaku slapped his forehead with his palm before attempting to snatch the piece of paper away from Chouza. "Come off it now..." he pleaded, trying his best to ignore Chouza's practically demented cacklings. "Women are capable of more things then you can imagine... writing a love letter is child's play to them."

"Stop being such a wimp Shikaku! Besides, it's not your piece of paper..."

"It's not yours either!"

"Yeah, but it's not like the person who the letter is addressed to seems to be interested... isn't that right Inoichi?"

Choosing to ignore both the petty arguing and the comments being made by Shikaku and Chouza, Inoichi decided that starting into space was by far the better option. He was also cursing himself for showing his two long-term friends the letter that was being casted around like nobody's business; he never expected them both to react like they did. He was hoping for reassurance, not to be practically wolf-whistled at and teased. It was a love letter from a woman from the Hidden Leaf, not a letter asking for five million otherwise he'd be tickled relentlessly with feathers.

Then again, Inoichi was also rather thankful that he only showed his comrades just the one letter... for there was plenty more where that came from.

On a crisp and bitter morning a mere two days after visiting his late wife's gravestone a letter addressed to Inoichi was in amongst the morning post. The envelope in itself was written in very posh, cursive writing... almost spider like... and certainly didn't belong to anybody he or Ino knew. Opening it shortly after Ino went off to do some training with the rest of her team, Inoichi could have died in shock when the content of the letter basically declared undying love for him and was hoping for a date in a few days time, with "lots of love from Sayru." His eyes lingered over the letter for a few minutes before ripping it up and disposing of it, dismissing it as a practical joke... how wrong he was.

The next morning saw another hand-written letter in the post addressed to the widowed Inoichi and while this time love was not declared, there was definitely hints that made him think that this addressee, Shia, was also infatuated. Once again it was hastily discarded, this time hoping that this would signal to both Shia and Sayru yesterday that he was not interested in finding romance again... for the second time in as many days, he was indeed in the wrong.

For the next few weeks a letter written by a lovestruck woman would snake its way onto the doormat to the Yamanaka's flower shop, each letter written by a different woman yet all addressed to the same man, Inoichi. Every day he would do the same thing and dispose of it as quickly as he saw it, silently praying for the day that he was no longer Konoha's most wanted man, the stud of the Hidden Leaf.

It wasn't just the letters as well. Whenever Inoichi would go out to meet up with Shikaku and Chouza a rainbow of eyes laced with the longest, thickest ebony eyelashes would watch his movements with contentment and whispers of gossip would just about be heard amongst the happiest of sighs. If he made plans to meet up with Ino after her training with Asuma, Shikamaru and Chouji, there would be a miniature gaggle of woman watching at a distance, practically swooning in some sort of childlike ecstasy. Even if it was just a matter of a simple trip to the shops to get the night's dinner for himself and his beloved daughter there would be women boldly going up to him and asking who he was cooking for and then going into a state of euphoria upon knowing that Inoichi was a man who not only ran a flower shop, but could rustle up a meal as well. Each and every time it happened he did his best to ignore the chattering, the gossip, the lovestruck simpers... it failed on occasion however.

"A man like that shouldn't be left to mourn on his own."

"Will his daughter be able to cope without a Mother? I'm sure she'll appreciate another woman around the house to have some girlie times together."

"He's a Jonin I hear, on the right side of 40 too."

"I can see what his wife saw in him, definitely."

"Experienced in all aspects i'll gather as well, ha ha!"

On a couple of instances Inoichi wondered why he didn't just stroll up to a group of giggling women and tell them that he doesn't want to offend anybody but he was not interested yet deep down he hoped that by continuing to ignore their advances, everyone would soon get the hint. That meet-up with Shikaku and Chouza in which he handed them one of his letters of admiration was supposed to have ended in Inoichi getting advice on how to deal with the situation gently or to get different suggestions, not to have the letter snatched between his team-mates and Inoichi himself wondering why he bothered.

He was also concerned as to whether Ino knew about what was happening with her Father and his seemingly increasing army of admirers; she may appear to be shallow and self-obsessed yet at the same time she was definitely the sharpest kunai in the pack. It wasn't that Inoichi was starting to get flustered and stressed out from all this attention... if anything he was rather composed, if still very bemused and a little apathetic, about it... it was more of the matter of word spreading. Gossip and rumours can cast its way around Konoha faster than a forest fire and Ino was always one to keep an ear out for the news... but every night the kunoichi would come back from training, rant about how useless Shikamaru and Chouji was, call Sakura more names under the sun for thinking she has a chance with certain guys and then ask what was for dinner.

A classic case of the same old, same old, Inoichi would smirk to himself during the conversations between the two.

This scenario was how it was for the three months that followed the death of Inoichi's wife and it soon wasn't long before he got used to the attention and just blanked it out, carrying on as normal and visiting his late beloved's grave every week with Ino, who was confused as to why there were so many flowers on her Mother's gravestone every time. In time the letters and the joyful squeals upon seeing the Jonin died down little by little until it got to the stage where it almost appeared to have stopped altogether, save for more flowers on the gravestone and an occasional chat with a lovestruck woman. This of course was good news for Inoichi, who felt like dancing but instead settled for a drink or ten with Shikaku and Chouza, both of whom were wondering who injected their friend with an anti-depressant.

Unbeknown to Inoichi however, what appeared to be patience paying off was clearly something on the opposite end of the scale.

It was a beautiful yet blustery Friday in Konoha, the day marking four months since the death of Inoichi's wife. While the sun was gleaming onto the ground below the wind practically carried both him and Ino to his one true love's gravestone, which was once again littered with flowers. Ino did have a face of bemusement about the non stop flow of bouquets yet the morning went quickly and a couple of tears were quietly shed while hugs and memories were shared.

Yet while the morning went as quickly as the wind seemed to be blowing, the afternoon went by at a slow, almost snail-like pace.

While Ino was once again out training with Asuma, Shikamaru and Chouji... "Hopefully it'll be something decent for once"... Inoichi manned the flower shop, leaning over the pay desk in boredom and daydreaming as an attempt to pass the time, an attempt to ignore the fact that not one customer had visited the business. During his daydream he imagined his late wife, casting a feather duster over the stocked up shelves with a smile on her face before rearranging a few of the displays to try and attract more customers... then he blinked. There in front of him was a woman, happily sorting through the flowers with a huge grin, sporting cascading dirty blonde hair that perfectly matched the locks that his beloved once had...

He rubbed his eyes rigorously, wondering whether he had one too many last night as the woman, whose back was facing him, started to sing cheerfully, like his wife used to when she was in charge the shop. Part of Inoichi started to ask whether this was a senseless joke being played on him... yet the other half started to believe that this was very much real; that his wife, the only woman he loved with all of his heart, was there with him. Not wanting to disturb the graceful singing he waited until she turned around so he could wrap her up into a hug and kiss her...

"Everything alright?"

"You have no idea how much I love you, do you?"

"I didn't think you were the sort to declare love to random strangers..."

"Huh? What... OH SHIT!" hollered a dozy Inoichi, falling backwards and sending flowerpots scattering in all directions upon the realisation that he was indeed having a dream, a perfect one but a dream nevertheless. A few seconds passed before the widowed Jonin groggily got back onto his feet, face tinted a shade of red in the embarrassment of what had just happened. Thankfully for Inoichi, the other person who was also in the shop... a woman dressed in a simple lilac and ebony long-sleeved, knee length dress with matching shoes... merely smiled and giggled.

"You really were out of it, weren't you?" the woman smiled, flicking a thick strand of midnight coloured hair away from her face. "Just as well my parents raised me up well; I could have ransacked your shop quite easily!"

"Yeah, it is just as well..." Inoichi mumbled, still in shock over his random, albeit sleepy, proclamation of love to a total stranger. "Look, sorry about that. I'm not usually the sort to fall asleep on the job."

"Oh, it's alright. I found it rather funny, actually. Hilarious even!"

While the woman started to laugh to herself again over the palaver that happened a couple of minutes ago, Inoichi shook his head and mentally cursed himself; if Ino was the one to have walked into the shop he would have been berated about it for days on end. "So... what can I get you today, Miss?" he finally spoke, snapping the woman out of her fit of titters and making her rub her chin.

"First off..." she mused, looking intently at the flowerpots that were still cascaded in all areas on the shopfloor. "Do you fancy some help clearing up? You sure made quite a mess falling over."

Inoichi looked at the woman as if she had instantly grown a moustache and beard before looking at the floor and sighing, arms crossed and curses once again flying through his head. "I sure did... must be heavier than I thought." he smiled, looking at the woman. "You can help if you want to but don't think i'm pressuring you or anything, after all I made this look like a shitheap..."

"And I offered to help. It's no trouble, really."

"Thanks, it's much appreciated."

"Don't mention it."

For the next five minutes Inoichi and the customer picked up the flowerpots that seemed to have gotten themselves into all the corners and the crannies in the flower shop and rearranged them neatly and precisely on the shelves that they once were on. When it was all complete Inoichi held out his hand as an invitation to receive a high five, instantly pulling away when he realized that it wasn't Ino who was helping him clean but a woman who was actually there to shop. Said woman was amused by the actions however, giggling once again and flicking more of her hair away.

With everything back to how it looked before his comical fall, Inoichi returned to the pay desk and the woman to the front of it, arms behind her back and a sweet smile plastered on her face.

"Thanks once again. If that was my daughter helping me I would never have heard the end of it." began Inoichi, wondering what Ino was ordering Shikamaru and Chouji to do.

The woman remained smiling, reaching into her shoulder bag to retrieve her purse. "It's not a problem. It was the highlight of my day... but I promise not to say a word. Can't have your business failing now, can we?" she added as a final thought.

"True." was Inoichi's blunt reply, leaning on the desk with his hands with content. "So what can I get you today? Is there anything in particular?"

"There is and there isn't."

"How do you mean?"

A few seconds silence casted itself over the shop as the woman stroke her lips with her thumb, trying to think of the right words to say. "You see..." she started to say, trying not to blush at the next few words. "There's a guy that I like."

Inoichi instantly knew what the woman was driving at and held up his hands. "I get it. You want to get him some flowers to show how much you like him and you're unsure what he prefers, am I right?" he asked, continuing his answer when he got a nod as his reply. "Why don't you just ask him?"

"He would instantly know that I was referring to him and I don't want to give the game away that easily."

"Ah, now that's a problem." Inoichi mused, casing his gaze at the rainbow of flowers on display. "Well what is he like? That is, if you know him at all."

Once again the woman thought about what she was going to say, smoothing down her dress with one of her hands while the other still clutched onto the purse. "I do and I don't. I see him around a lot and i've always been too nervous to speak to him... I tried with letters and I never got an answer. What I do know about this man is that he has a softer side. He appears to be tough but deep down he has this caring side and everyone seems to like; always looking out for his only child, talking to everyone who speaks to him first... and he's also been rather successful in life too. He trained as a shinobi for years until he first found love."

"Then what you need are violets." Inoichi confidently declared, going over to get a small bouquet of them and not noticing that the woman was staring at him with a deep longing and a mischievous smirk. "They may be small, but they are stuble and despite their dark colour have a cute look." he added with a grin, stroking some of the delicate blooms while going back over to the desk. "Now, do you want a card so you can write to this guy or not?"

The smirk got wider as the woman couldn't keep up her pretence any longer, throwing caution to the wind, her purse on the floor and herself onto the desk with confidence. "No, i'm sure you can just find a nice vase to put them in." she giggled, winking.

Inoichi dropped the bouquet of violets in shock; he thought that all the attention from admirers had more or less disappeared and now one of them was sitting on the pay desk of his shop, giggling at his surprise while slowly and seductively moving her dress higher up her legs, He quickly regained composure and sighed, folding his arms.

"Aww, don't be like that." the woman stated with a pout.

"So you were referring to me the whole time?"

"Naturally! It was rather cute though, how you were oblivious to the fact that I was talking about you. Nearly made me want to pounce on you there and then..."

"Look, if i've given you mixed signals then i'm sorry, but i'm just not..."

"And all those letters I sent to you as well..." the woman sighed, leaning in closer to Inoichi, who instinctively moved backwards as well. "It upset me when I didn't get a reply so I thought that it would be best to just get over my shyness and turn into a little minx." she purred, swinging her legs over the desk and pishing herself off so she was standing just mere inches from the unsure Inoichi. "I'm Sayru, by the way. I believe I sent you the first letter you ever got?"

Trying not to get flustered at her increasingly blatant advances, Inoichi grabbed Sayru by the shoulders to stop her moving closer and looked into her slate coloured eyes. This made Sayru giggle even more, eyes glistening with deviousness.

"I know you've only been with one woman before... but I promise that there's really no rush." winked Sayru, gently stroking her foot up and down Inoichi's leg.

In that instant the widowed Jonin pulled away from Sayru, walking away from her with his hands held up. "I don't know where you got the impression that I was looking but I really am not interested in anybody. I only lost my wife four months ago and I have no intention of finding anybody to replace her... ever."

Sayru merely shrugged, grabbing one of Inoichi's hands with her own and pulling him closer to her in a movement so quick he didn't have time to react. "You say that now but will you be saying that in a year's time? Two years? Half a decade?"

"Yes I will."

"No you won't." chuckled Sayru, wrapping her arms around the now highly embarrassed Inoichi. "There's nothing wrong in falling in love with someone new after the death of the one you loved and lost."

Instinctively Inoichi grabbed Sayru's hands and pulled her embrace apart, an action that made her frown. "It's wrong to me, especially when I loved that woman with every fibre of my being, especially when I still love her to this day, especially when i'm unsure whether i'll ever get over losing her."

Undeterred, Sayru looked Inoichi deep into his eyes, smiling wickedly and marvelling at how red he was getting over her advances. "I'm telling you my sweet, time is a wonderful healer..." But before she could say or do anything more the door to the flower shop opened, the ring the bell next to it made scaring both Inoichi and Sayru.

"Hi Dad, i'm FINALLY home!"

"Hey Ino..." Inoichi began, letting go of Sayru's hands which only made her latch onto his waist in sheer happiness. "How was training today?" he then asked, trying to pierce the simpering Sayru off him while at the same time thanking his lucky stars that the entrance to the shop is blocked from his current view.

"We have a mission from tomorrow." Ino stated bluntly, shuffling being heard as she was getting rid of her backpack. "We will be gone for about four days so try not to miss me, yeah? Although I don't see how Shikamaru is going to cope; all he did today was lounge around like a rock and it took ME to motivate him. What a lazy, good-for-nothing, useless, moronic piece of fuc-"

"Can you get off me already please?"

"What the? Dad?" Ino questioned, rushing to see where her Father was and who or what he was talking to... and when she finally came into view her jaw dropped in complete surprise.

Sayru, who still had her arms wrapped around Inoichi's waist like a limpet, was now snuggled up to him, resting her head on his chest. Inoichi, meanwhile, was struggling to wriggle free from Sayru's grip and he didn't know where to look. He could have died of embarrassment on the spot, for not only did he have a practical stranger latched onto him, wanting to be his girlfriend and trying to seduce him, his daughter was looking at him as if he had been possessed by his own jutsu. It didn't help that silence decided to make an entrance, making the whole atmosphere very uncomfortable, at least for the crimson coloured Inoichi.

Ino continued to study the scene for a few seconds with a startled expression plastered over her face until she saw that her Father clearly didn't feel at ease. In one lightning quick movement the blonde kunoichi reached for a kunai from the pack strapped to her leg and launched it with a volatile force at Sayru. The woman clad in ebony and lilac froze for an instant upon the object thrown at her before releasing her grip from Inoichi at just the right moment, the kunai now flying into a different room and hitting a chair with a loud thud. However Sayru pushed herself away from Inoichi with such a thrust of her own that she ended up falling on the floor, awkwardly landing on her side. She was so busy groaning in pain that she didn't notice Ino walking up to her, lifting her by the collar of her dress.

"Stay AWAY from my Father." Ino viciously hissed, a slightly relieved Inoichi standing behind her... although at the same time, the Jonin didn't want Ino to start knocking lumps out of Sayru.

With an amused giggle, Sayru got up confidently, pulling Ino's hands off her dress and dusting herself down. "Not my problem he's very attractive."

"He's NOT interested."

"Will he still feel the same a year from now?"

"Get the Hell out of our shop before I kick you out... literally."

"Am I supposed to take a threat from a little girl seriously?"

At that very instant Inoichi grimaced, rubbing his forehead with his hand... he knew exactly what was going to happen and his thinking was correct, for what Sayru said was all that was needed to make the stubborn and headstrong Ino snap. Three seconds was all the time the younger Yamanaka desired to punch Sayru square in the mouth, sending the older woman flying backwards into a display of carnations and daisies. Reeling from the sheer power of the assault, Sayru clasped her hands over her mouth, wincing when she noticed that blood was starting to flow. With tears stinging her eyes as a result of the punch, Sayru looked up at the smirking Ino, Inoichi still standing behind her but looking away and sighing quietly to himself.

"Let us get one thing straight here, you stupid idiot..." Ino growled, arms folded and sporting a stare that could kill anybody within fifty feet. "My Dad lost his wife, my Mum, just FOUR MONTHS AGO. Do you think that he would just forget about her in that short space of time? The answer is no, you useless ditz. There is no way that twenty years of loving someone will vanish in mere weeks. A love like that will NEVER die. So get this through your thick skull; he is NOT looking for somebody else and he never will... so pick your retarded self off the floor and fuck off or i'll use my jutsu on you and make you walk off a cliff."

Still in shock that within five minutes she went from holding her crush in her arms to being floored with a punch and verbally assaulted by the daughter of the man she desired, Sayru gathered whatever dignity she had left and lifted herself off the floor, one hand still over her bleeding and slightly purple mouth. Once again she smoothed down her dress before walking towards the way out of the flower shop. She looked longingly at Inoichi, who was still not observing the scene, then at the still aggravated Ino before walking out at a hasty speed, resisting the urge to cry.

Finally breathing a sigh of relief that she was gone, Ino let a smile grace her porcelain face as she went to tidy up the few carnations that were scattered from Sayru colliding with them. When the flowers were back in their original place she turned around to face her Father, who had finally stopped looking in random directions and was now observing his daughter with a little concern.

"There was no need for you to hit her, Ino." Inoichi spoke calmly, arms swinging slightly as he headed towards the pay desk to pick up the violets he dropped a while ago.

Ino merely shrugged, folding her arms and flicking her head back to stop her hair completely covering her vision. "There was EVERY need; that harlot was all over you... and it doesn't help that you are too damn placid to do a thing."

With a small smile as he knew his daughter was right, Inoichi didn't answer, instead choosing to place the bouquet of violets back where he picked them from. Ino watched him do so then suddenly got a horrible thought in her mind, a thought that would not die unless she got an answer for it as soon as possible...

"There better have not been any more like that one come in here trying to ask you out." she said sternly, getting Inoichi's attention. Once again Inoichi smiled lightly, placing his hands on Ino's shoulders for reassurance.

"No, Sayru was the first one... I promise you."

"Good!" Ino proudly declared, noting that the clock on the wall read five pm, the time that the flower shop generally closes for the day. "I hope she's the last one as well, we don't need losers like her coming in trying to get you to be their boyfriend. Although I think my threats to them all have been working..."

Those last few words spoken by Ino instantly made Inoichi flinch, not knowing whether to be aggravated at his daughter for threatening random women in the streets of Konoha... or whether to be bemused; by saying what she said surely Ino knew about everything all along, right? He ended up sticking to the latter, as his curiously was peaking more than his anger.

"You knew that I was getting letters and that admirers were talking about me whenever I went out?"

"Duh!" was Ino's blunt reply, locking the entrance to the flower shop up and flipping the sign on the door over so the public knew it was closed. She then paused for a few seconds, turning to face Inoichi with a look on her face that oozed cockiness and confidence.

"Think about it Dad..." she trilled, strolling over to her Father happily. "Why weren't you getting many letters the past few weeks? That was because I was picking them up before you collected the rest of the post, so I could rip them up. Why weren't dumbstruck gigglers gossiping about how much they wanted you in the streets? Simple, because every time I heard some witch say anything about you I threatened them to leave you alone because you were not after anybody else. To be fair I didn't know myself for a long time as you're so oblivious sometimes it's hard to tell what you're thinking... guess Food Boy and his Father can come in handy SOMETIMES." Ino finished, shivering over the fact that she just labelled Chouji as being helpful.

Inoichi looked at Ino in sheer bemusement before chuckling; she certainly was a lot sharper than he gives her credit for... although this time it was him who had a question that wouldn't cease crossing his mind until he asked it.

"You know Ino... you confuse me a little." Inoichi started to wonder, ushering his daughter upstairs so he could start to organise dinner for the two of them. "You have said to me on a fair few occasions that "a young girl in love is a powerful thing." Not saying that i'll get with her because you know how I still and always will feel about your Mum... but surely Sayru is the same as you?"

"Dad, you really ARE clueless sometimes!" the younger Yamanaka stated, leaping onto the sofa once the twosome got inside their living room before continuing. "This Sayru is in LUST with you and lust is a twisted form of love, it makes you into something you're not, it confuses your mind into thinking you are head over heels when it's merely like a sparkler, it will fizzle out. The same goes for all those other tarts and to stupid old Billboard Brow, who clearly will never get a clue."

"But you are in love because you don't do anything like that, correct?" Inoichi humoured, wandering into the kitchen to switch the oven on.

"Exactly it! I have felt the same way over my darling for seven years and it continues to grow steadily, just like you with Mum. It's one fantastic feeling."

"I have to agree with you." smiled Inoichi, thinking fondly over the woman he loved so much for two decades before remembering something that his daughter said to him when she first came back home after training. "Hey Ino, you say you're off on a mission tomorrow?"

"Yep, a C rank one. I know that i'll complete it and that i'll HAVE to help out Food Boy and that lazy piece of crap Shikamaru but yeah, i'll be gone for four days."

"Want me to make your favourite tonight as a way of saying good luck?"

"Not that i'll need it..." Ino confidently called from the living room, flicking through a magazine contently. "But yes, you know how much I love that stuff... and how you make it, of course."

Inoichi couldn't help but laugh at how Ino made the last word sound about fifty syllables long. "Your favourite it is. It'll be ready in about half an hour, okay?"

"No problem Dad!"

With a smile on his face that practically went from ear to ear, Inoichi laughed quietly to himself as he set about chopping up the vegetables needed to make Ino's favourite meal. While he was doing so he couldn't help but thank whoever it was up there that made Ino arrive home from training a few minutes earlier than usual. If Ino was to come home at her normal time Sayru would have probably started stripping Inoichi of his clothes by then and because he is a man that likes to treat women with respect he would have been stuck as to what do say to make her stop. Not out of disrespect to his late wife, but because that's how he is. In fact it was a quality that made his beloved fall for him in the first place.

Yet at the same time he couldn't help but have a rethink about something he thought to himself back at the first time both he and Ino visited the gravestone of the love of his life... something about his late wife being the only woman for him. Technically, that is false.

There has been another girl in his life for the past fifteen and a bit years. She has locks as long as Inoichi himself yet hers are of a brighter blonde. Her eyes are as blue as the brightest of skies and she often dresses in a dark purple that compliments her figure and her looks. Her personality is generally very fiery and very stubborn and she will do anything and stop at nothing to get what she truly desires. Sometimes she would say things that were harsh and on occasion she would come across as vain and shallow yet she generally lives her life with no regrets... and as she continued to flick through her magazine humming to herself about how she would get the man of her dreams ahead of Sakura, Inoichi smiled proudly across at his daughter.

Without a shadow of a doubt his late wife, the one he cherished for twenty years... was and always will be the only one he loved. Yet at the same time he has to look towards the future and to that promise Inoichi said he would do for his beloved.

The only girl in his life now was Ino, the daughter he was so immensely chuffed to have... and she would always be the only one for him.


End file.
